SEATTLE – After meticulously packing his bags, slipping on a black warmup suit and placing a matching ski cap atop his head, Mark Sanchez recognized a reporter in the quiet of the New York Jets locker room. Sanchez being Sanchez, he approached to shake hands.

"Nice to see you," he said. "Wish it was under better circumstances."

The circumstances are not good. The Jets are in a free fall, and their fourth-year quarterback's stock, if not his spirit, is dropping right along with them.

The Jets have lost three in a row to fall to 3-6, the latest an uninspiring 28-7 setback Sunday against the Seahawks at wet, chilly CenturyLink Field. The defense accounted for the sole New York touchdown. In their previous game, the Jets scored only nine points.

Sanchez being Sanchez, he stood before the media and took the blame afterward.

"We can't win with the way I played today," the former Mission Viejo High and USC standout said. "I've got to take care of the ball better and help us."

Sanchez did not do those things in his much-anticipated reunion with former Trojans coach Pete Carroll, who infamously and publicly scolded Sanchez for leaving school a year early. Sanchez finished 9 of 22 for 124 yards with an interception and a lost fumble. He has thrown at least one interception in seven of the Jets' nine games.

At least there were no lingering bitterness between Sanchez and Carroll, who talked on the field before and after the game. Sanchez said Carroll was the "same as always – just excited. He asked about my parents, my family and stuff. It was great."

The rest of Sanchez's afternoon was anything but. He made two fatal mistakes – an interception on third-and-goal from the 6-yard line in the second quarter, and a trying-to-do-too-much fumble while being sacked in the fourth.

"That's a critical error," Jets coach Rex Ryan said of the interception. "Those are things that really kill you."

It was a bad decision, and Sanchez knew it immediately. No one was open, but instead of throwing the ball away and taking a field goal for a 10-7 lead, Sanchez floated the ball across the field toward tight end Dustin Keller. Richard Sherman easily intercepted it.

"That was the start of the turn of things going bad," Sanchez said. "I've got to play better than that. So that's on me."

It was, but it wasn't only on him. A false-start penalty on Keller had pushed the ball back from the 1 to the 6. Ryan was certain Tim Tebow would have scored from the 1. Instead, the Jets turned the ball over. After another mistake, a muffed punt by Jeremy Kerley, the Seahawks took a 14-7 lead. It was 21-7 by the time Sanchez fumbled, at the Seattle 32.

This latest poor performance, coinciding with increased Tebow usage, only will intensify the calls from New York columnists, talk-show hosts and fans for Sanchez to lose his job. Ryan repeatedly, and at times heatedly, said that wouldn't happen. He's sticking with Sanchez. Why?

"Because this is how I feel," Ryan said. "It gives us the best opportunity to win games. That's the only reason I make any move."

Ryan said the Jets' problems go far behind "one guy," and he's absolutely right about that. The Jets' running game continues to be average, their offensive line inconsistent and their receivers non-existent. New York's wideouts – one of the most anonymous groups in the league – seldom gained separation against Seattle's big, physical cornerbacks.

There's little doubt that the talent around Sanchez isn't what it was when he helped the Jets reach consecutive AFC Championship Games in his first two seasons. There's also no disputing that Sanchez has regressed. His completion percentage is down. His turnovers are up. The Jets are headed toward the first losing season of the Sanchez-Ryan era.

None of this confirms that Carroll was "right" about Sanchez's decision to leave school. It's impossible to say what would have happened had he stayed. Sanchez could have improved. He could have declined. He could have gotten hurt. It's all hindsight and speculation.

All Sanchez can do now is look forward and try to get better. He knows he'll have the support of his loved ones, including his faithful father, Nick, who was outside the Jets' locker room waiting for his son after another painful defeat.

After both worked the room, greeting old friends and familiar faces, they embraced. Nick kissed Mark on the cheek and whispered words of encouragement into his ear. Then off Mark Sanchez went, out of the stadium and into the rain.

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